From Infosys to ISB to Startups — Rajesh T on Building Product Sense | Sree x Rajesh #1

In Part 1 of this conversation, Sreekandh Balakrishnan sits down with Rajesh Kumar Thiagarajan — engineer, product thinker, ex-Infosys, ISB alum, serial founder, and long-time consultant at Equal Experts — to trace the mosaic of experiences that shaped who he is today. We walk from a fifth-standard memory of refusing to join either the "studious" group or the "mischief" group ("why can't I start my own group?"), through being nicknamed "Prophet" by a college professor, into seven formative years at Infosys, a business degree at ISB, a social-media startup that didn't work, a casino-hardware startup, and finally Recruiter Box and Equal Experts — where his now-signature philosophy of "strong opinions, loosely held" really took shape. Along the way we get into: • Why "collaboration" is a word Rajesh struggles with • What dialogue actually means (and what JK has to do with it) • Where his product sense came from (hint: Joel on Software, 2008) • The state of abhaya — not fearlessness, but absence of fear • Why he always starts with "three things" and usually only has two In a bonus segment at the end, Sree and Rajesh think out loud about how to help young people from less privileged backgrounds reflect on what to do next — and why "passion" might be the wrong question to ask anyone. Part 2 (Rajesh's Infosys years, and the culture that built one of India's most ethical companies) coming soon. — Recorded May 23, 2026. ⏱ Chapters 00:00 Cold open — thanks for waking up early 00:19 The prompt: how did the Rajesh of today get built? 02:58 Two groups in 5th standard — and starting a third 05:38 Stepping onto stage, leading prayer, intensity 06:39 11th & 12th — feeling lost in a bigger pond 07:42 Engineering college, and the "Prophet" story 09:00 Part rebel, part rule-follower — holding two thoughts 10:29 Joining Infosys (1999): ethics, integrity, all-nighters 11:37 Carrying work in his head — for years 12:48 ISB, and the choppy years that followed 13:50 Brio Tribes — first startup, first scars 15:00 Casino machines, insurance fine print, and pass platforms 16:11 Recruiter Box — hitting product-market fit 17:25 Going back to "Prophet" — what was going on in his head 20:04 Collaboration, dialogue, and holding space for questions 23:50 Meeting Sree at Enchanting Travels — strong opinions, open mind 27:02 Why JK Krishnamurti's "dialogues" are one-sided 28:08 500 backlog items — let's not even look 30:33 How Enchanting Travels & Travelopia scaled from that foundation 32:53 Where the deep product sense came from — Joel Spolsky, 2006 35:05 Recruiter Box: "you two go think and come back — this isn't working" 38:21 Three things he carries forward 39:42 On abhaya — the absence of fear, not fearlessness 41:50 The day he caught himself thinking "what will Ragu think?" 42:38 Closing reflections — fortune, technology, and what lies beyond 44:05 What we should chat about next: the Infosys story #Podcast #ProductThinking #Career #Infosys #Startups #Solopreneurship